The vacant Cage Warriors bantamweight belt will be on the line come May 6, as undefeated duo Dylan Hazan and Caolan Loughran meet in the octagon.
The event is scheduled for just over four weeks time, and will take place in Italy at Rome’s Fiera Roma stadium.
𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗩𝗔𝗖𝗔𝗡𝗧 𝗯𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗺𝘄𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝘁! 🏆
Our main event for #CW154 is set as 𝗗𝘆𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝗛𝗮𝘇𝗮𝗻 and 𝗖𝗮𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝗟𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝗿𝗮𝗻 will go head-to-head for 135lbs supremacy on May 6th in Rome 🇮🇹
📖 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗 𝗠𝗢𝗥𝗘: https://t.co/qtGoBv2M8R pic.twitter.com/4w80X7kWEX
— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) March 7, 2023
The card’s headliner comes as a direct result of former 135 lbs title holder Michele Martignoni’s recent decision to relinquish the belt, as he returns to flyweight in search of another championship bout.
Local countryman Hazan (9-0) is in a rich vein of form coming into the contest, having won all four of his fights within the promotion, including decision wins against Josh Reed and Scott Malone, as well as forcing Raymison Bruno into first round retirement.
The 28-year-old beat fellow Italian Jefferson De Filippis convincingly last time out at Cage Warriors 144, delivering a number of brutal ground and pound strikes which saw the contest be called prematurely.
A once flyweight contender, Hazan will travel up a weight class in search of promotion gold.
Up against him is in-form Irish prospect Loughran (7-0), who, similarly to his upcoming opponent, enjoyed an extremely successful 2022.
‘The Don‘ has picked up three stoppage wins in the past 12 months, knocking out Bakhtyaar Oryakhail, Festus Ahorlu and Luke Shanks all before the final round.
Caolan Loughran puts heavy pressure on the former champ and gets a decisive victory. A big feather in the title contenders cap
Whats next for Loughran?
📺 Watch #CW145 live on @UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/skXJqYKWGQ
— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) November 4, 2022
This run of finishes earned Loughran ‘Breakthrough Fighter of the Year‘, an award voted for by Cage Warriors fans via poll, and his exuberant performances in front of packed crowds in Manchester, Belfast and London have certainly put the Irishman on a ‘one’s to watch list’.
Cage Warriors President Graham Boyle is looking forward to the upcoming bout, and was incredibly complimentary of both participating fighters.
He said: “Dylan Hazan is undefeated for a reason and with the home crowd behind him, there’s going to be a serious atmosphere inside the Fiera Roma.
“Caolan Loughran had one of the most impressive years of anyone on the roster in 2022, proving all his doubters wrong…now he’s going into enemy territory to prove that he has what it takes to be a champion.
“We’ve had some incredible 135lb champions in Cage Warriors over the years and on May 6th, one of these guys will continue that tradition.”
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